The present invention relates to golf club irons and, in particular, to an improved hosel construction wherein the hosel is positioned rearwardly of the leading edge of the ball striking face.
Conventional golf club irons include a hosel connected at the heel end of the club head which attaches the shaft to the head. The relationship between the centerline of the hosel, or shaft hole, and the furthest portion, or leading edge, of the golf club face is defined as face progression. See Golf Club Design Fitting Alteration and Repair by Roger Maltby, one of the most respected and accepted manuals in the golf industry covering practically all aspects of golf clubs. For the purpose of this application, when the leading edge of the club face is behind the hosel centerline, golf clubs have rearward face progression. When the centerline of the hosel is in line with the leading edge of the ball striking face, the club head has zero face progression. When the leading edge of the club face is in front of the centerline of the hosel, the club head has forward face progression. Normally, the hosel of a conventional golf club is formed with either zero face progression or rearward face progression, creating what is known as an "offset" between the club face and the hosel. Traditional golf club sets, using this principle, have progressive rearward face progression in accordance with the loft of the individual irons. With these designs, the hosel lies in front of the ball striking face, forming a bridge between the hosel and the angled club face. As a result, when the club face is swung outside the intended swing plane line through the center of the ball, the ball is often struck on the bridge between the hosel and club face or directly on the protruding base of the hosel itself, producing what is known in the game of golf as a "shanked shot."
The prior art shows various attempts at making shankless golf club heads, including the U.S. Pat. Nos. to Byrne (1,550,501), Klein (2,683,036), Barber (3,947,041), and Peterson (Des. 302,715), among others.
The Byrne patent (1,550,501) shows a golf club wherein the hosel is located completely behind the ball striking face, producing a golf club head where the ball striking face is entirely ahead of the shaft centerline. The shaft connects to the hosel above the club head body.
The Klein patent (2,683,036) also discloses a non-shanking golfing iron where the center line of the hosel is located well behind or wholly to the rear of the ball striking face, and the shaft connects to the hosel above the club head body.
The Barber patent (3,947,041) shows a shankless iron wherein an extension of the centerline of the club shaft intersects the plane defined by the club face in the lower quadrant. The shaft extends into the hosel only at a depth which connects with the club head at a point above the club head body.
Finally, the design patent to Peterson (Des. 302,715) shows only a low-lofted iron wherein the hosel connection is a direct extension of the ball striking face. As shown in FIG. 3, the centerline of the shaft does not intersect the loft plane of the club face, and the shaft extends into the hosel above the club head body.